This invention relates to a flexible tube that can be filled with water for watering trees and other vegetation. In particular, it relates to a flexible, waterproof tube sealed at each end and held in a fixed position, that slowly leaks water out through apertures at its base.
Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on trees and other plantings for landscaping, commercial growing, and home gardening. Countless hours of labor are invested to water-in these plantings, until the planting establishes an extended root system. Despite these efforts, millions of dollars are spent replacing trees and other plantings due to improper watering during the root establishment period.
Most forms of vegetation, when established in a landscape, have moisture supplying roots that penetrate the soil for significant distances. For example, many forms of fully established trees are known to have root systems that extend radially outward from the base of the trunk, well beyond the drip line of the tree's leaf canopy. For this reason, even a light rainfall supplies a significant amount of water to an established plant.
Trees, shrubs, and other forms of vegetation, are commercially supplied with their roots tightly concentrated into a relatively small diameter, soil filled plastic container or a ball that is held together with a fabric wrap, most commonly burlap. When the plant is removed from the container and is planted in the soil, a light rainfall supplies very little water to the plant, relative to an identical plant with an established (extended) root system. For this reason, many plantings fail to survive even in periods of normal rainfall without substantial efforts to provide supplemental watering. A drought further heightens the need to supply supplemental watering. Also, if people go on vacation or are going to be away for some time, they may wish to be sure that their plant has adequate water while they are away, rather than risk losing costly plants. In many cases, people desire to install plantings in remote locations, such as a vacation home, or even the center median of a highway, but are unable to do so because of the costs or efforts required to supply supplemental water to the new planting during the critical period of root extension and establishment.
A number of devices have been invented that can be placed around trees or other plants and filled with water. The devices slowly let the water leak out into the ground. Some of these devices are expensive to make, however, or are not versatile enough to be used for a variety of different applications.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,108,970 shows a self-watering plant guard that can be placed around a tree. It is filled with water and slowly lets the water out through a water release outlet in the base. Stakes are used to secure it. However, the devise has numerous internal compartments and would be expensive and difficult to make. Further, because of the formation of these multiple compartments to create and sustain vertical rigidity, the capacity for holding water is significantly reduced. Lastly, because of the device's installed height, it is not adaptable to trees and other plantings that have low hanging branches (example: conifers).
U.S. Pat. No. 6,023,883 shows a drip irrigator that is fitted around a tree and is filled with water which percolates out through multiple openings in the bottom. It has a removable cap at the top for filling. It is made in a C-shape, which keeps the holes at the bottom and the cap at the top. This device uses the trunk of the tree to hold it in place. In plantings that are not perfectly vertical, it places a substantial horizontal component of force upon the trunk of the tree when filled with water. Further, because the device comes into contact with the trunk of the tree, there is no air circulation, which promotes the formation of mildew and trunk discoloration. The device is not adaptable to plants having low hanging branches and is not adaptable to multi-trunk trees and shrubs. The method of administering water from the bottom of the device (a series of orifices) is prone to plugging from dirty water. In a commercial application, the device releases the full contents of its reservoir in a period of six to ten (6–10) hours.